Just two weeks after Speaker of the House Paul Ryan expressed public support for the legalization of industrial hemp, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is now guaranteeing that the 2018 Farm Bill will include the industrial hemp legalization provision once the House and the Senate solve their difference regarding this issue.
If there’s a Farm Bill, it’ll be in there, I guarantee that,” McConnell told reporters last Friday.
(To watch Read entire story

Earlier this year, the Washington Legislature passed House Bill 2334 (the “Bill”) into law. The Bill allows licensed marijuana producers and processors to use cannabidiol (CBD) from a source not licensed by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB). The Bill defines a “CBD product” as “any product containing or consisting of cannabidiol” and would permit the use of CBD products from unlicensed sources so long as the CBD Read entire story

Start from scratch with your CBD product labels.
Since the beginning of the year, our firm has received a growing number of inquiries related to the labeling of cannabinoids (“CBD”)-infused foods. This legal issue is particularly confusing given the fact that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) has yet to provide clear guidance for this category of products. This post aims to shed some light on the matter by addressing some of the Read entire story

There’s been quite a bit of it lately on hemp and CBD.
Earlier this week, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan announced his support to end federal cannabidiol (“CBD”) prohibition and expressed strong support for the uses of industrial hemp. To view the video of Ryan’s comments, go here at the 21:15 mark.
For any newbies out there, CBD is one of the many chemical compounds in a class called “cannabinoids” that naturally occur in cannabis Read entire story

Mint is still fine; CBD, not so much.
A few months ago, I spoke to a reporter from Quartz about cannabidiol (CBD). She told me that a local cafe was offering a CBD-infused latte and that it piqued her interest for a story. Her local baristas were not alone as numerous bars, restaurants, and cafes across the country have been experimenting with CBD-infused beverages. However, as with all things CBD, the regulatory framework is rapidly changing. If Read entire story

Hemp and Hemp-CBD in California is wild right now.
As readers of this blog know, California is on its way to developing robust laws governing the sale (and all other aspects) of cannabis and cannabis products. So, it’s somewhat surprising that California’s laws concerning the sale of industrial hemp and hemp-derived cannabidiol (“hemp-CBD”), to the extent they even exist, are all over the map. And in some cases, selling industrial hemp or Read entire story

For the most part, anyway.
We’ve been closely following the trajectory of SB 1409 and on September 30, 2018, Governor Brown signed the bill which will go into effect on January 1, 2019. This legislation is a huge step for California cannabis, in that it will add an industrial hemp pilot program to the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s registration system.
Currently, California law regulates the cultivation of industrial hemp, and Read entire story

Uncertainty continues for hemp legalization.
On September 30, the Agricultural Act of 2014, more commonly known as the “2014 Farm Bill” (the “Farm Bill” or the “Act”) expired before the enactment of its potential successor, the Hemp Farming Act of 2018 (the “2018 Farm Bill”). It’s also unlikely that the 2018 Farm Bill will be revisited before the November elections. The Conference Committee’s failure to meet this deadline has led to Read entire story

We’ve got ’em right here.
As soon as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Epidiolex as the first cannabis-derived prescription, we knew this day would come. Epidiolex was the first approval for a purified drug substance derived from marijuana plants, after all, and marijuana is classified as a Schedule I controlled substance in the federal Controlled Substance Act (CSA). The CSA considers marijuana to be among the most Read entire story

Our firm’s main practice areas include cannabis, China, trade and immigration. As such, it may not surprise you to learn that we get a lot of questions about the developing international cannabis trade. This is in large part due to the fact that Canada is on the verge of legalizing marijuana nationwide.
Importing or exporting cannabis in the United States at this point is extremely limited. Marijuana is listed as a Schedule I substance in Read entire story

CBD transport routes can (and should) get weird.
The legal status of cannabidiol (CBD) has long been complicated. The Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill) allowed for the cultivation of “industrial hemp”, defined as the cannabis plant that contains less than .03% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on a dry weight basis, as long as that hemp was grown pursuant to a state’s guidelines. The 2014 Farm Bill lead to a massive influx of Read entire story

Hemp cultivation for non-pharmaceutical could help revert desiccation of farm land. Italian farmers are in crisis as low prices of wheat, desiccated land and big companies importing grain take their toll. But some have found a solution: growing cannabis. Hemp cultivation has been legal in Italy since 2016, and over the last few years the amount of land dedicated to the plant has increased from 400 hectares (1,000 acres) in 2013 to 4,000 hectares Read entire story

This past year, the country has witnessed widespread interest in the use of cannabis in its nutraceutical (when added to food or drinks) form. Cannabidiol (“CBD”), the non-psychoactive chemical compound found in the cannabis plant, has gained great popularity among alcohol beverage companies. The growing popularity of CBD-infused products combined with their mainstream nature has given alcohol beverage companies the false impression that blending Read entire story

Investments in plants for processing industrial hemp and pharmaceutical cannabis amounting to at least 255 million euros are currently in progress in Greece, says the director of Cannatec Greece, a company leading the sector. Talking to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (AMNA), Dionysis Sarmazanidis said that the facilities expected to go into operation by the end of 2019 He added the investment may well end up being higher since the budget for Read entire story

Coming soon?
Last week, California’s industrial hemp bill, SB 1409, received a unanimous passing vote from committee. We last wrote about SB 1409 in March, and the legislation has undergone some changes, warranting a new summary of what has been proposed.
Currently, California law regulates the cultivation of industrial hemp, and specifies certain procedures and requirements on cultivators, not including an established agricultural research Read entire story